New
by madam-fandom
Summary: Annabeth is back for a summer at camp, but issues with Percy, a new camper, and drama are sure to follow. Will at some point have multiple chapters, but give me some time. Muchas Gracias my Lovelies. M
1. Chapter 1

Annabeth was done with people. She was not only jetlag, but also had just gotten off the phone (now monster proof thanks to Leo) with Percy, and after much yelling, they weren't talking. What a great way to start the summer.

But in spite of all this, she couldn't help but smile as she crested the top of Half Blood Hill and laid a hand on Thalia's Pine. She gazed at the beautiful sunset, perfect like the Gods had decided that this moment should be perfect, just for her. She readjusted her backpack on her shoulders and pulled her sunglasses down to shield her eyes from the harsh sunlight that glared off the far-off ocean. She couldn't help but think that Poseidon was doing this just to get back at her for yelling at his son.

Still, her smile held as her crossed the common area and opened the door to the Athena cabin, inhaling the scent of books and drafting pencils. She waved hello to Malcom and climbed the stairs to the loft that she had all to herself. She threw her backpack on the bed, promising herself that she'd put the stuff away properly later.

She changed into her camp clothes, which consisted of jean shorts and, as always, a Camp Half Blood shirt. Today, she wore the t-shirt, leaving her tank for tomorrow. She strapped her knife to her thigh, grabbed her water bottle and climbed down the ladder, only to be stopped by Malcom.

"Where do you think you're going?" He said, his grey eyes swirling with a private joke that only he got.

"Why is this any concern of yours, exactly?" She crossed her arms, tapping her foot as an attempt to hurry him along.

"Well, I can tell you clearly aren't going to see any sons of Poseidon, so forget I asked," He finished with a wink, opening the door and leading her out.

"How was your year, Annabeth?" He asked, kindness returning to his eyes. Annabeth weighed the options of telling him about her latest fight with Percy, and decided against it. She loved Malcom, but knew he would take any option to advise against her relationship with Percy. Mal meant well, but was just as biased as she had been when she'd first met Percy.

"It was alright, you know, school and stuff, but I spent it in NYC, and got to spend a ton of time on Olympus. My designs are going up right now, but I won't get to see them until July, when we go as a camp to visit." She knew Mal loved to talk architecture, and he didn't disappoint. That's the thing about chatting with a child of Athena, while they had infamous people skills, they were actually very intelligent. They could easily see through a lie, and then see why you were lying. And right now, Malcom had noticed that Percy had yet to come up in conversation, and he realized that they must be fighting.

"I can't wait to see them in real life. I looked over a few of the designs around Christmas when you sent them, but I would love to get to see the real thing. I'll see you later; I'm going to check on the infirmary, I saw Katie Gardener go in earlier; just want to make sure she's alright. Have fun training!" Malcom ran off in the direction of the big house. His crush on the daughter of Demeter was no secret to her, and Annabeth found it adorable.

Annabeth spent the next hour and half beating the living daylights out of a dummy, ignoring the small crowd that was forming behind her. She could tell that they were honestly trying to be inconspicuous, but it took a small miracle to pull one over on a child of Athena. They were in twos and threes scattered around the common area, but all of them were watching her beat up the dummies with serious keenness.

She rolled her eyes and decided that her almost two hour workout had to end soon, and she scooped her water bottle off the bench and poured a mouthful in her parched mouth. She shot a glance at the people who were watching her practice, and realized that she recognized very few of them. There were so many new faces that she had neglected to meet over last summer when she had been frantically looking for Percy. Despite her sweat and the heat of the day, she shivered at the memory of last summer. So much death and destruction she had witnessed, and only one thing could help her. And that thing happened to be a rather irritating son of Poseidon.

Of course, now they were better. She could sleep at night without screaming and needing him. But she knew she was never going to be quite right again, and the only thing that made her numerous sacrifices worth it, was the home she'd fought to protect. She walked into her cabin and found Malcom sitting in a swivel chair, chatting with Katie Gardener, who sat on another chair. They looked up as she opened the door.

"Hey…"Annabeth said, holding in her smile with a struggle. Her eyes cut to Malcom, whose face clearly read, _do not_.

"Oh hi Annabeth. We were just drawing. Dinner is in a half hour, and your phone's been going off." Katie said, trying to hide the fact that she'd been hanging out with Malcom in a cabin alone. Of course, they hadn't done anything, but she knew she couldn't bring it up without Annabeth getting a kick out of her embarrassment.

Annabeth nodded in their direction, grabbed a change of clothes and ducked into the bathroom, but not before shooting a wink at the two of them.

"Behave, you two," And with that she shut the door and took a quick shower. She threw on an identical, non-sweaty, outfit and brushed her hair out.

Annabeth walked back into the common area and saw the rest of her cabin was getting back and Katie Gardener was nowhere to be found. After throwing a smirk at her half-brother, she climbed into her loft and checked her phone, dread filling her heart.

Four unread texts and five missed calls. All of these had the little picture of Percy next to them. She sighed and read through the texts:

_(1)Annabeth, I'm really sorry about all the yelling. I shouldn't have done that. I just had a rough last day, sorry. _

(2)_That's no excuse. I'm really sorry, and no matter what, I love you. Don't ever forget that. _

(3)_I'm really sorry, and I'm definitely going to apologize in person when I see you at camp tomorrow. Love you. _

(4)_Oh, my mom said she loves you too and will send you some cookies to apologize for my bad behavior. Sorry again, Love you, see you tomorrow. _

Annabeth smiled at her phone, picturing him writing and re-writing his apology to get it just right, and how Sally must have gotten angry with him. She smiled a bit, mouthing, 'I love you, too' to him, even though he was miles away.

"You are totally whipped." She looked in the corner of her eye and saw Malcom sitting on the ledge of her loft. She smirked back at him.

"You should talk. Checking up on me?" she wiggled her eyebrows at him suggestively. She relished the blush that spread to his cheeks, making his blonde hair look almost white.

"Dinner and you shouldn't try to keep up your tough guy reputation if you want to mouth I love you to a phone. I thought you two were fighting?" Malcolm returned the eyebrow wiggle, but couldn't elicit a reaction from her.

"We were. And I think you and Katie are adorable. Let's go to dinner." She shoved him off the ledge and jumped off after him. They landed eight feet below in the center of the common area.

"Cabin six, let's go to dinner. Line up in order of seniority! You know the drill," And with that, she lead her cabin out the door and to the dining pavilion. They sat down and ate dinner, Annabeth and Malcom silently daring the other to bring up their conversation from the loft.

"Campers, as many of you know, tomorrow night we will have the first game of Capture the Flag of the summer. The reigning champions are the Ares cabin, and they will be challenged by the Athena cabin tomorrow. Make alliances with caution, for secret alliances will lead to a very interesting game. Team leaders are Clarisse LaRue and Annabeth Chase. You will each choose a co-captain from another cabin to assist you in leading and forming alliances. As Clarisse is the champion from last year, she will choose first." Clarisse stood and smiled at Annabeth apologetically.

"Chris Rodriguez, Hermes cabin." She shrugged at Annabeth as if to say 'we need the numbers'. Annabeth smiled and stood. She looked at the sea of faces, deciding who to choose. Percy would be a natural choice, but on the off chance that they would still be fighting tomorrow, she looked at Leo. He was a bit unpredictable, and combat wasn't his thing. Jason Grace was her third choice, just because he was like another version of Percy, who she liked a bit less. She made up her mind.

"Percy Jackson, Poseidon cabin." Annabeth smiled sarcastically at Clarisse, as Travis Stoll decided to make an outburst.

"What a shocker!" he put his hand over his face in mock surprise. His brother Connor caught on, "I sure hope there aren't any shenanigans, brother!" Annabeth smiled coldly at them.

"I really don't think you're going to want to make any comments after we crush you." She stood and walked to meet the Stolls in the middle of the pavilion. All eyes were on them, but Annabeth could care less. This was a show to mess with the heads of the enemy, and she was sure it would work.

"We have superior numbers and frankly better leaders. We will not lose." Connor said passionately.

"I don't need numbers. I could beat your entire team with just Percy. My team is going to thrash you. And I think you must not have realized just who you're speaking about. One word: Tartarus." The pavilion fell silent. The Stolls both put up their hands in surrender and back down. Annabeth grabber her plate of dinner and walked out of the dining area. She knew the affect that the word would have on the enemy. Of course, she did know that she could win, but a little fear tactic never hurt.

She went to the Poseidon cabin and ate her dinner quietly there, wishing Percy was there. She left the cabin when she knew people would have stopped caring. She was half way across the common area when she heard Chiron's voice call her from the big house. She changed course and jogged up the steps to the wraparound porch.

"Yes?" She looked at Chiron, who was in his wheelchair. Ahh, new camper. He did love to show off.

"I was wondering if you had time to show our new camper Taylor around camp." He gestured to the small girl with big hazel eyes next to him. She was very pretty, with very pale skin and dark brown hair that fell in waves to her shoulders. She couldn't have possible been any older than six, but her eyes were very intelligent.

"Undetermined?" Annabeth asked. Chiron nodded.

"She'd only eight, so she's still got a few years." Annabeth nodded and grabbed the girl's duffel bag.

"So, which parent do you have?" Annabeth asked, trying to get a feel of which cabin she might go into.

"My Dad's always told me that Mum died when I was a baby. I guess she must not have." The girl laughed uncomfortably.

"So your mother is a God, probably Athena, Aphrodite, Demeter, Iris, or Nemesis." The girl nodded and began to think, a look of extreme focus coming over her.

"Who's your godly parent?" The girl asked, her big eyes probing.

"Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom and Battle strategy. My name's Annabeth Chase, by the way, Head counselor for Athena cabin. I'm seventeen, going to be eighteen in July." Annabeth gestured to the grey cabin, before leading Taylor around the camp, showing her all the training facilities, promising her that they'd be more interesting in daylight when they were in use. She finally stopped at the door to the Hermes cabin, steeling her nerves for the inevitable confrontation with the twins.

She opened the door. "Taylor, this is going to be your home until you get claimed, then you'll move in with your half family. These are your counselors," Annabeth said as Connor and Travis elbowed their way to the front to lean against either side of the door frame.

"Look who decided to show up!" Connor said mockingly

"Come to apologize for hurting our feelings, Love?" Travis said, pulling a big pout.

"Never, I'm just dropping off Taylor. She's new, so you'd better be nice and show her the ropes until she gets claimed. And you will not pickpocket her or pull any pranks on her. That is an order that if not followed will result in a duel that I will almost certainly win." Annabeth gave Taylor a gentle push into the Hermes cabin, hoping that they'd be nice to her.

"Us? Pickpocket? Never." Connor looked offended, but put a hand on Taylor's shoulder and led her inside.

"Don't worry; we'll take care of her. She'll be fine. Get some sleep, before we thrash you tomorrow." Travis, momentarily showing an emotion other than overconfidence.

"See you guys tomorrow." And with that, Annabeth walked back to her cabin, falling asleep only to wake up sweating with dreams of Tartarus. The next morning could not come soon enough.

**A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed! I'm planning on making this a mulit-chapter story with plot (gasp!). Let me know if you have any ideas, which I may or may not ignore. REVIEW PLEASE! Thanks for reading! ~M**


	2. Chapter 2

The sun streamed into the window of the Athena cabin, waking Annabeth from her fitful sleep. She'd finally fallen asleep at midnight, but kept getting plagued with nightmares, relapsing back into the horrible months she'd experienced in the fall after the war. Each dream was a variation of Percy dying without her. She had watched him die thirteen times through the night, so when the sun finally rose, she was more than happy to get back into the real world, where Percy Jackson was very alive. She swung her legs out of bed and pulled on her standard camp outfit, a Camp Half-blood tank top and today she was spicing it up a bit with cargo shorts, instead of her usual jeans.

She climbed down the ladder and checked her watch, it was 8:20. She could take a quick walk and wake them up at 8:30. She left her cabin after counting the sleeping bodies and checking to make sure everyone was still there, and they were. She walked to the training area of camp, past the odd collection of cabins that now surrounded the central common area. She remembered back to when it was just a U. Now they had extra wings on either side of the rectangle for all of the new minor gods.

She walked through the strawberry fields and picked one of the ripe ones, no doubt a result of woodland magic and Dionysus manipulating the fruits. She checked her watch and decided it was time to get everybody up so they could make it to breakfast on time.

"Athena cabin, it's time to get up," She said softly to her cabin, stirring them from their sleep. They all took a minute to glare and yawn at her, an odd mixture of angry and confused.

Fifteen minutes they were ready to leave the cabin, walking across the green yawning. They sat at their table as the food magically appeared on their plates, each of them getting a variety of breakfast foods, before they scraped a piece into the brazier. Annabeth was sure to throw a bit more than she'd used to, just in case Bob needed a snack.

She ate her breakfast relatively fast, talking strategy with her cabin, assigning the alliances to some of their more charming members. They were going to ally with Apollo cabin and Hephaestus cabins. To do this, they knew they'd have to take their dishes duty for lunch and dinner, and while this would cut down on the training time that the Athena cabin would have, Annabeth knew the tradeoff would be worth it.

They also had border patrol in the morning, which they would need to get rid of, or at least not send the entire cabin, so they could at least get some time to train before the game. Annabeth decided that she would take the border patrol, because she knew she'd need to talk to Percy alone to get him on board with her plan, and to mend fences with him.

After breakfast, Annabeth watched Malcom lead the cabin to the training area, where they split up to work on hand to hand combat, sword work, bow and arrow, or any other form of training they felt they needed work on.

Annabeth climbed the hill and sat at the base of Thalia's pine, greeting the dragon that sat in the grass next to the tree. She ran through some tactics, drawing in the dirt with a stick, until she heard a car pull up to the end of the took a deep breath and stood, pasting a smile on her face. She hated apologizing to people, especially when she was at fault.

"Annabeth darling, how are you?" Sally Jackson got out of the driver's side door and gave Annabeth a hug. Sally knew they were fighting, but didn't care. Annabeth was like a daughter to her, and if she wanted to give her a hug, she damn well could.

"I'm good, how about you?" Annabeth said, smiling for real now.

"I've been excellent, and Paul sends his regards, but he has a teacher work day today and couldn't come to see Percy off to camp. Keep him out of trouble, won't you? No quests or world saving wars this summer, yeah?" Sally nudged Annabeth with her shoulder, trying to keep the atmosphere light while also gathering information about whether or not her son was going to war.

"Looks like it should be a pretty quiet year, but who knows. I'll try to keep him out of trouble, Sally. It's quite a task." Annabeth threw a wink at Percy, silently letting him know she wasn't mad anymore. Percy visibly relaxed and came to stand next to him mother. He was only an inch taller, standing at almost exactly six foot, but he looked much bigger than his mother, on account of his general buff-ness and overall imposing nature.

"Have fun! Be sure to call, and don't forget to brush your teeth!" Sally gave her son one last hug and waved goodbye to Annabeth before getting back into her car and driving back down the road. Annabeth turned to him, wishing she wouldn't need to apologize, but knowing she would.

"Percy, I'm sorry." Annabeth took a keen interest in her shoes. She hated apologizing, and knew he would exploit this for fun. He put a finger under her chin and forced her to meet his eyes.

"Annabeth, I'm the one who should be apologizing. This is my fault, I shouldn't have done that." He took his hand off her chin and grabbed one of her hands, the one that wasn't on her knife.

"No, I overacted. I shouldn't have yelled at you. You had every right to do that." Annabeth cracked a smile. "Now we're just apologizing in circles. How about I promise not to do it again, and you promise not to freak out on me like that. Or at least we'll try." They were both smiling by now, just enjoying each other's existence.

Percy wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly, not letting it escape his notice that she was giggling.

"I missed you, Love." Annabeth smirked.

"It's been three days. I had dinner at your house last Thursday. It's now Sunday." Percy rolled his eyes and made a little face out of his hand, miming her talking.

Annabeth laughed and gave him a kiss, because she'd missed him too. Percy quit messing around and pulled her body next to his, pulling her in by the waist.

He pulled away, leaning his forehead against hers, smiling. He hated it when they fought, but it was a necessity of life. They were both so intense that they were bound to clash at some points, but still, they got along pretty well.

"We should get to lunch, cause I'm starving." Percy said, causing a laugh from Annabeth.

"Let's go. And this time, I'm winning, no invincibility can save you this time," And with that she took off, sprinting down the hill, neck in neck with Percy. They tore down the hill, Annabeth pulling a slight lead as they wove through the crowd in the common area on the way to the Poseidon cabin.

"Ha! I won!" Annabeth shouted as she opened the door.

"No fair, I had to carry my bag!" Percy whined. He threw his bag on his bunk, glancing around his cabin. "Is Tyson here? Cause there is no way the harpies left a plate on the table." Percy looked at her in confusion.

"Oh, I ate in your cabin last night. You're co-captaining with me for capture the flag tonight against the Ares cabin. We're allied with Hephaestus and Apollo. I want to get Demeter too, but I think they might already be with Clarisse." Annabeth explained as they walked side by side to the dining pavilion. Percy nodded.

"They have numbers on their side, you know." He observed. He knew how many unclaimed younger kids were bunking in the Hermes cabin, which he figured would side with Clarisse.

"I really don't need numbers. I need you. And the two of us could totally take them." Annabeth looked to him out of the corner of her eye.

"True that. I think we should just run screaming at them and have no strategy. We should throw water balloons at them. Party Pony tactics." Percy grinned and elbowed her in the ribs. She laughed at the mental picture of her team running and screaming.

They walked into the pavilion and sat at their cabin tables for lunch, Annabeth checking in with her cabin to make sure the alliances were all in place. After hearing that they were, she went to stand next to the Poseidon table with Grover and Juniper.

"Hey G-man, long time no see! How have you been?" Percy said, pulling the satyr into a hug.

"I've been excellent, you know, spreading the word of Pan, saving the environment. Juniper has been traveling with me, planting trees everywhere she visits. The dryads are even more united now." His eyes had lit up with passion as he spoke of his beloved wild. Percy knew how much it meant to him, and was always sure to recycle in his name.

"How about you, O Savior of Olympus?" Grover said, raising an eyebrow at his friend.

"School is terrible as always, but Annabeth has been living in New York, so it's been tolerable." Percy shot her a wink, and Grover turned, noticing her for the first time.

"Annabeth!" He exclaimed, pulling her into a tight hug. Annabeth hugged him, noticing that he'd grown again; now they were the same height.

"How have you been?" He said, holding tight to his friend. "I've been pretty good. Overseeing the designs of Olympus is a pretty rigorous schedule, but I've been doing ok in school, and I've gotten to see Percy a bit, too." Grover looked at the two of them, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

Annabeth went back to her table, leaving Percy with Grover and Juniper.

After lunch, she trained with Percy, both of them breaking a sweat so quickly that shirts were cast aside. Annabeth used this to her advantage, as he was a teenage boy, and her neon green sports bra was hard to miss.

They pushed each other harder and harder, neither of them able to land any blows for almost a half hour. They danced around each in a dance that would end instantly if either of them made even the smallest mistake. They were oblivious to the class across the arena that had stopped and was now watching them practice.

Clarisse was teaching, pointing out moves that they were using, and editorializing with little stories of times she'd used those moves, and times that those moves had been used on her.

"Ah, the viper-beheading strike. Percy Jackson was taught that by a fallen camper. A true hero. Luke Castellan. But she saw that coming." Clarisse kept the editorial up until she was shushed by the rest of her cabin.

It seemed the entire camp was watching their sparring, and a collective gasp rose from the crowd when Annabeth forced the sword out of Percy's hand with the very same move he had attempted to use on her.

It looked like the fight was over for them, but naturally it wouldn't end like that.

**A/N: Thanks so very much for reading! I'm terribly sorry that it's so short (but still longer than the sucky first chapter). I've been a bit busy with the school play, Rent, which I honestly think everyone should see. Anyways, leave me a review, please. I would love to chat, so PM me to ask about the meaning of life, or my favorite color. I will be answering random questions, so feel free. Anyhoo. Leave me a note and I shall chat. Muchas Gracias My Lovelies ~M**


	3. Chapter 3

The sword clattered to the stone floor of the arena. The crowd gasped, but Percy and Annabeth just smiled at each other, totally oblivious of the crowd that was watching them train. Their eyes locked, energy sparking between them, and Annabeth threw her knife over her shoulder at the wooden target behind her. It flew, flipping end over end, finally sticking in the center bull's eye, quivering in the wood. Percy smiled at her, and Annabeth knew she'd hit her target.

Both of them assumed fighting stances, Annabeth with her elbows up by her face, Percy with his hands in loose fists next to his jaw. They both had wiped the smiles off of their faces, which were now set in faces that displayed no emotion.

Taylor watched this with wide eyes. She had been following her cabin on their way to sword fighting class, when Connor had stopped and was watching the fight with baited breath. She'd already seen money exchanges between many people, but Connor had yet to place a bet.

Taylor's eyes shifted back to Annabeth and Percy who had begun their dance again. She could barely tell who was where. They were blurs of tan skin, only identifiable by the blurs of blonde and black that would become visible every so often. The entire camp seemed to have come out to watch.

"So, I take it we have an audience, Perce?" Annabeth's voice said, crystal clear, as if she wasn't fighting.

"It looks to be the entire camp, love" Percy responded, neither of them even stopping for a breath.

They both were slowing down, and grins were now visible on both of their faces. They were both flushed, sweat trickling down the sides of their faces. They slowed until they were just circling each other. Neither of them wanted to be the first to pick up the dance again. Both of their attention was now split between the fight and glancing at their audience. Annabeth took the opportunity.

Percy's green eyes were shifted to the crowd that was watching with acute interest. Annabeth shot at him faster than anyone's eyes could follow, but the outcome was immediate. Percy was suddenly pinned to the ground, Annabeth holding his wrists to the floor while kneeling on either side of his torso.

"Pinned!" she said, relishing the look of surprise on her face. Percy just smiled, and nodded, a smirk growing on his face.

"You got good. When did that happen?" Percy commented, as he accepted a hand up from Annabeth.

"Right around the time when you got easily distracted. But really people, spectating? Seriously?" Annabeth turned in disbelief at the now organized crowd that was watching.

They all looked at each other, a bit embarrassed, but not enough to say they wished they hadn't watched. Finally, somebody stepped forward.

"You shouldn't be so damn interesting if you don't want to get watched. But really, I was just here for the easy pickpocketing." Travis Stoll waved a handful of wallets infront of the crowd, and numerous people looked to their pockets, shocked. Annabeth just laughed. Percy reached into his pocket, pulling out a pen.

Taylor was officially confused. Why did he even have a pen? Any why hadn't it fallen out yet? And then he uncapped the pen, and Taylor officially knew she was going insane. The pen glowed and grew into the bronze sword that he had just been fighting with. Taylor barely realized Annabeth letting go of Percy's hand to go pull her knife out of the wooden target, frowning at the half centimeter that she'd been away from dead center, even though she'd thrown it over her shoulder without a glance at her target.

Percy threw his sword from hand to hand, frowning.

"How did I drop it?" He looked at Annabeth for the answer. She smiled and slowly demonstrated on him, again.

"You have got to be kidding me!" Percy yelled. "Viper beheading strike? That's quite a throwback. I learned that my first week. You rotter." He narrowed his eyes at her, but smiled anyway.

"It's not my fault you forgot it. You did learn it from the second best swordsman of the century." Annabeth shoved his with her narrow shoulders. Percy pulled a pen cap out of his pocket, touching it to the tip of his sword, shrinking the weapon into a pen and shoving it into his pocket again.

"Who's the best of the century then? Me?" Percy joked, but Taylor was lost. Confusion seemed to be becoming a normal feeling here.

"Don't be silly. I just beat you!" Annabeth put her knife into the sheath. "Of course I meant you, I don't count. And I think you may have been distracted." She shot him a wink, glancing down at her lack of a t-shirt. Percy rolled his eyes, but threw her the tank top that she'd been wearing.

"It definitely wasn't a fair fight, just for that reason." Percy pulled his t-shirt off, pouring water over his head as Annabeth did the same. "Now, if we both were shirtless, that'd be fair." Annabeth rolled her eyes.

"I can control myself, unlike you." Percy laughed, "Yeah, sure. You wanna go for a swim, cause I am toasted." Annabeth smiled.

"Let's go, because I am getting sick of the audience." She shot a death glare at the crowd, which scrambled to disperse. Annabeth smiled up at him, putting an arm around his waist as he put one around her shoulders. Percy pressed a kiss to the top of her head, and then pulled away.

"Race you!" He yelled, sprinting for the end of the pier, almost a half mile away. Annabeth shot after him, on his heels as they raced across the green, weaving among the crowd. They both reached the pier at the same time, diving in unison off the dock.

Taylor felt like a goldfish, her mouth opening and closing after the show she'd just witnessed.

"I suppose it's story time for our cabin, don't you think so brother?" Connor said, walking over to an open patch of grass and sitting down crisscross applesauce.

"Indeed it is. Anybody who already knows the story, don't waste your time, but we owe an explanation to all the newer kids. An explanation of those two. And what the hell their deal is." Travis sat down next to his brother, looking like he was about to tell a tale of sadness and love, except he had watched it unfold infront of his eyes.

-Page break-

Annabeth was smiling too much. She had always hated that when she smiled her nose scrunched up and made her look like a mouse. Apparently Percy found that attractive, because he kept telling her that she was beautiful. They were at the bottom of the canoe lake, enclosed in a bubble, just chatting.

"I cannot believe that there's hero worship even at camp. It's like Benedict Cumberbatch getting star struck at the Oscars." Annabeth waved her hands around or at least tried. One of her hands was interwoven with Percy's. Percy rolled his eyes.

"They're just curious. It's like we're new again, except people have already heard about us. I think it's kinda cool. Like were actual heroes, not just kids who got stuck saving the world. And really, Blenderenick Cabbagepatch? Not him again. I thought you weren't a fan." Percy stuck his nose into her face, accusing her with his eyes. He loved teasing her about this man who she for some reason fangirled over. Annabeth was a perfectly sane, logical person, and this Bedicute Covergirl had her squealing and watching YouTube videos.

"I'm not a fan." Annabeth stuck her nose in the air. "I was just using him as an example. And I think it's weird. I mean, this is home, and now people are suddenly watching us. Like, what?!" She signed after her outburst, wishing she could just let it go. It's not like she didn't secretly enjoy the attention, but she was already growing weary of the judging eyes that always seemed to be on her. Last summer, everyone had averted their gaze, the fallen hero who had done so much and sacrificed for nothing. This year was different. She was no longer the pathetic shadow that she was last year without him, and she was planning on having fun.

They talked about nothing for upsides of an hour, pausing only to kiss after their three day separation, which for them, was quite a while.

"What were we even fighting about?" Percy said as they walked up the beach hand in hand.

"It's silly." Percy smiled, "You actually got mad at me for finishing your mint chip ice cream Annabeth?"

She blushed, but nodded. "To be honest, I think you got fair warning." He nodded, smiling widely at her as they walked into the dining pavilion, ignoring the looks they received from the other campers. Because to be totally honest, they could care less what people thought of them.

**A/N: I hope you all take time to review this new chapter (see what I did there?). But really people, you do know I have a little graph that tells me how many people have seen this, right? 310 people, and only 3 reviews. No pressure though. But really, just send me a smiley face. Even if it's a guest review. Cause I love you all. Muchas Gracias my Lovelies~M**


	4. Chapter 4

"So Annabeth is a very long story, as is Percy, but let's start where they meet." Travis began, shooting a look to Connor, who nodded. Taylor was glad somebody was finally giving her an explanation.

"Percy Jackson was 12 years old when he first came to camp, beating the Minotaur on his way in. He made enemies with Clarisse, if any of you've met her; she's not a hard person to piss off. But anyway, he was claimed by Poseidon and was given a quest."

Taylor's eyes were already wide, but he said it as if it were nothing, like beating the monster of legend was just an entrance exam.

He was cut off by Clarisse, who sat down on the ground next to him. "He had to get the Master Bolt, which is Zeus's big lightning bolt. He took Annabeth Chase and Grover Underwood with him, and naturally he got it back, busted his mother out of the underworld, and became a big damn hero."

"Are you telling the story of Percabeth?" Mitchell asked as he sat down. His eyes lit up with a devious smile. Taylor recognized him as the boy who was always smiling, he seemed to never be sad, like he saw the entire world like a child done, full of hope.

"No, we're telling the story of them, not a love story." Clarisse growled at him, with just a hint of lingering affection because of Selina.

"Please, their entire story is one of love; they just took a while to figure it out." Mitchell argued, never letting his eyes leave Clarisse's.

"Whatever, I'll continue the story. His second summer, I got the quest, but he had a massive head and snuck out of camp, with his brother Tyson and Annabeth, to find Grover. He had been kidnapped by a Cyclops. But anyways, after a trip to the spa, a pirate ship, lots of ghost sailors and a particularly irritable doughnut shot, we saved Grover, camp, and they got to irritate Luke, who chose the wrong side." Her voice broke, and quiet fell for a moment.

"Their next adventure wasn't over a summer; it was actually the next winter, right before the solstice, when Percy, Annabeth and Thalia went to collect the Di Angelos from school. But, as things always do, things went south fast and Annabeth was kidnapped, but everyone thought she was actually dead, except for Percy, that is. The Huntresses, servants of Lady Artemis, came to stay at camps. A quest was sent, but Percy wasn't included, so he snuck out again. Long story short, Bianca Di Angelo and Zoe Nightshade fell in battle, but Annabeth was saved. That was when we realized Luke was really gone." She stopped there, looking to Travis and Connor to continue the story.

"The next summer, the one before Percy turned 16, when he was going to bring the apocalypse, or so it was prophesized."

Taylor spoke up for the first time, "What do you mean prophesized?" Travis shook his head and continued.

"You won't find out if you interrupt me. But I digress; Annabeth got her quest, finally. We'd been hearing about this quest that she was going to get since she came here when she was seven. It's really a long history, and not really mine to tell, but you can ask her if you want. Anyhow, she took Percy, Grover, and Tyson with her into the dreaded Labyrinth in search of Daedalus. After a ton of stumbling around in the dark, some horse poop," The older campers laughed, "And the Mt. St Helens incident, Percy wound up on an island for a while, causing lots of panic," Mitchell but Travis off with a flourish.

"You're telling it all wrong! You're leaving out the drama! Annabeth waited in total agony for two weeks, thinking he was dead. Did you hear that she gave him a kiss for good luck right before he went to blow the volcano?" He made a very feminine squeal. "Regardless, after he came back, he made the terrible decision to bring Rachel Dare, now the oracle, one the quest, because she is a clear sighted mortal, meaning she can see through the mist that hides our world. Overall, a very bad tactic, putting the two of them on a quest, but anyways, they found Daedalus, fought back Luke's Army, excuse me, Kronos's Army, and generally pissed off Annabeth." His smile melted away a bit when a shadow was cast over his small thin form.

"Who pissed off Annabeth?" She asked. Taylor recognized her as Annabeth Chase, and while she didn't know Annabeth well, she figured telling new campers her story would be a bad plan. And getting caught would be even worse.

"Oh, hey darling! How are you?" Mitchell asked, his smile returning. Annabeth smiled back, as she was clearly faking her annoyance. She sat down; stretching one leg out infront of her, and the other was tucked close to her body, an elbow rested on her knee cap. She sat close to Mitchell, amusement in her eyes.

"I'm awesome! You guys explaining the deal to the newer kids? Hey Taylor!" Annabeth added the last bit as she looked at the group of kids that she didn't even recognize.

"Yup, we're right before the big Titan War, and the official start of Percabeth!" Mitchell added, his hands shaking with excitement. Annabeth smiled indulgently, like Mitchell was a small child and she was amused.

"Well do you mind if I tell this bit? I was actually there. And what is Percybeth?" She looked confused, and a bit apprehensive.

"Girl! You of all people should know what Percabeth is! It's your couple name! You and Percy! The entire camp ships you!" Mitchell exclaimed, his flustered hands all around his face.

She smiled. "A couple name huh? And Shipping? That's short for Relationship right?" She received a nod from a peeved Mitchell. "And people actually care that we're together? Like are personally invested in it?" She looked dubious.

"We are in love with your love!" Mitchell put a hand on hers and smiled supportively.

"So I guess you haven't heard that we're in a fight?" She smiled, waiting for the exclamations.

"What'd Prissy do this time?" Clarisse asked.

"Well, it was actually nothing, and we talked it out, so it's all good now. I just thought I'd mess your day up be insinuating that you OTP was ending." Mitchell looked hurt and began breathing again, but Clarisse just smiled, enjoying his distress.

"Wait, why do you know what an OTP is, Annabeth?" Mitchell asked once he'd re-oxygenated his brain, his dark eyebrows low over his crystal blue eyes.

She looked uncomfortable. "It was the summer Percy was due to turn 16, and fulfill the prophecy to either end the world, or save it. So after blowing up the Princess Andromeda, and losing Bekendorf, he heard his prophecy. It was terrifying, and he took it to say that he was going to die so; he stupidly took a dip in the River Styx, thus making himself invulnerable. I remember being really upset about that," She smiled at the memory, like much worse things were to come. "But we had an army of maybe 40 people to defend the island of Manhattan from an invading army, with no support from the Gods at all."

A few younger kids gasped, looks of pure horror on their faces, and Annabeth decided to tone down the depression. She looked to Taylor, who had a look of shock on her face, like there was no way she could believe that they'd done this.

"But anyways, after Percy made a deal to block the rivers so their Army couldn't use them, I activated all the statues in the city, which are actually automatons. That was pretty fun." Her beautiful face darkened and her eyes grew stormy, "We lost too many people in the days that followed." Her hand unconsciously went to her necklace, where she touched the bead with too many names.

"There are so many people, who are heroes, and every single person is one, they just need to figure it out for themselves. But we were losing, and it was only a matter of time before we ran out of physical bodies to protect Olympus with. We had dropped back into a ring around the doors to the Empire State Building, which is the gate to Olympus; we'll be going later this summer. We were tired, mostly injured, and fighting for our lives. The Ares cabin had declined to fight alongside us, due to a spat with the Apollo cabin." She looked to Clarisse, whose head was bowed. She put a hand on her shoulder, as if to say that it was alright. Clarisse stiffened.

"She would still be alive if my pride hadn't gotten in the way." Her head snapped up and she looked deep into the eyes of all the people watching. "Never let your pride get in the way of your friends and family. I promise you will regret it." She put her head on her hands, her elbows pressed on her knees, the very picture of regret.

"But anyways, the Party Ponies helped up out, letting us live to fight another day. That was pretty fun. The next day the Ares cabin arrived just in time to kill the drakon, which was only able to be killed by a child of Ares. We lost a good friend that day." Annabeth put her hand up to stop Clarisse, but there was no chance. She had already walked away, her face a mask of grotesque anger and torture. She was stiff as she walked to her cabin and shut the door. Annabeth sighed and let her hand fall.

"It wasn't her fault; Selina Buregaurd sacrificed herself to get the Ares cabin to New York. She stole Clarisse's armor and led the cabin into battle, but she was no fighter, a daughter of Aphrodite, no child of the war god. She was killed, But Clarisse slayed the drakon, fulfilling the prophecy. To be honest, Selina had no intention of living until the end of the war. Her boyfriend was the first casualty of the war, Charles Bekendorf. He died to end the Princess Andromeda. They were both Heroes, and I hear they have a place in Eslium." She smiled a bit at the end, and Taylor thought that it was odd to find such peace in the death of people who were loved.

"But even with the Ares cabin, the Party Ponies, and eventually Hades and Nico Di Angelo himself, we had no chance in holding off Kronos. He was just too powerful. So Percy made a deal, because even as we were fighting for our lives, the gods were fighting their greatest foe, Typhoon. He made his way across the US, remember the freak storms? Those were him trashing the entire country. At the same time as Lord Poseidon, Percy's father, helped the Gods bring down Typhoon, we were in the throne room of Olympus, trying to hold off Kronos, who was in the body of my old friend, Luke Castellan." She stopped for a moment, her voice thick.

"Do I hear storytelling?" Percy called jovially across the green, but he stopped when he saw Annabeth's face. "What's wrong? What happened?" He ran the rest of the way across the green and put an arm around Annabeth's shoulder, pulling her into him.

"It's nothing. We're filling the newer campers in on the events of the Titan war." Annabeth explained as Percy's face darkened.

"Well, where are you? I can finish for you. My favorite part is the end," He said, a sarcastic smile on his face.

"EEEPP!" A grinning Mitchell put his hands up to cover his face, making small animal noises.

"You guys get to hear the first hand story of the official start to Percabeth! You are so lucky!" He exclaimed to the campers.

"I was in the throne room, after your dad killed typhoon." Percy nodded, keeping an arm tight around Annabeth's shoulder.

"Well, let's see, It was me, Annabeth, and Grover, the original trio," He smiled at Annabeth.

"Almost dying, good old times," They smiled, reciting Grover's comment from the elevator.

"But we owe our lives to the sacrifice of Ethan Nakamura, who turned of Kronos, giving us time to regroup. He died, but his legacy lives on. The reason all of you will be claimed by your 13th birthday is because of his last request. The whole reason this war was started was because some other demi-gods felt ignored. My wish from the gods addressed this issue."

He smiled, and Taylor realized he had the kid of smile that made her feel good about herself, like he really cared about her, and would fight so she could be safe. He looked like a brother, like everyone's big brother, who would beat up the mean boys who used to make fun of her, or make her father not be afraid of her. He looked like a hero, his quiet confidence and easy smile. He was tall, strong, tan, basically just like a Greek hero should be. But she knew it was his heart that made him a true hero, he was willing to sacrifice so that others wouldn't have to. And she smiled.

"But Annabeth was the real hero. She talked to Luke, not Kronos, and he was the hero as well. He sacrificed himself to save the world. And that is a true hero. We always forget that heroes are more than tall strong people; they're the people with the biggest hearts, the ones who will take a bullet for others. They are loyal to their friends, and they make the world a better place. And all of you are heroes, or villains based on your choices."

His intense green eyes swept over the captivated crowd, his tan face very serious. His face broke into a smile.

"Enough serious stuff, let's get to the fun bit, our prizes." Annabeth smiled widely. She sat up next to him, not touching him at any point, much to Mitchell's chagrin.

"Annabeth was named official architect of Olympus, Thalia was named attendant to Artemis, my brother became a General of the Cyclops army, and Grover was named Lord of the Wild. So yall better recycle!" Percy pointed around the group with a mock serious smile on his features.

"But what did I get, you ask? I may look like a god," He got an elbow in the ribs from Annabeth, "But I tuned them down. I could never leave my friends. But Annabeth, eh, I could do without." He smiled sarcastically at her, but only got an eye roll from her. Mitchell smiled indulgently like he was watching his favorite TV show.

"But really, it was an easy choice. I could be a god for a while, but it would be dull, I could do more good with my wish than make myself a God. So I chose you guys. I hope you're grateful." He smiled again and got poked in the ribs by Annabeth.

"Rachel the Oracle was officially named the oracle by Apollo later in the day, but before that, I was yelled at by Annabeth's mother, Luke's dad, and got the correct amount of appreciation from my parents. You'll meet my mom soon, she comes all the time. She's like the mom for all the demi-gods. And her cookies are to die for." He commented matter-of-factly.

"But the best gift of all I got later that day." He glanced over to Annabeth out of the corner of his eye, but her face was giving him nothing.

"Do you guys even care? I mean I know Mitchell does, but do any of you?" He looked uncomfortable for the first time Taylor had ever seen, and now she was curios.

The crowd nodded, now larger than ever. "Fine, Annabeth and I got together later that night, the evening of my 16th birthday."

Mitchell yelled in outrage. "You're telling it all wrong! Let me tell it!" Percy and Annabeth smiled good-naturedly. They didn't like that everyone knew their business, but that night had been pretty public.

"They were being totally adorable, sharing a cupcake that Annabeth had made for his birthday, when she finally kissed him. Like really, it was almost 4 years in the making. But they finally got there. Then we crashed, with torches and everything. We dumped them in the canoe lake, but Percy, the rotter, made a bubble at the bottom of the lake and basically had the most adorable second kiss ever. They were just too adorable." His face was flushed with excitement, and both Annabeth and Percy were blushing, but they were grinning.

"Gods know that hasn't changed much" Clarisse said. She shot an irritated look to Percy who smiled provocatively.

"Does it really bother you that much?" He asked, an arm going stealthily around Annabeth. Clarisse nodded. Percy smiled, shooting a look to Annabeth, probably a question. She nodded barely a fraction of an inch. He grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet and walked with her towards the woods.

"Where are the love-birds off to now?" Clarisse growled a small smile on her face. While she pretended to be all anger and toughness, she was happy for them, because she didn't believe in happy endings, but she did believe in love. Thank you Selina, she silently prayed.

"To make out in the forest," Annabeth called back, going on her tip toes to press a kiss to Percy's lips. He turned to face her with a face that was truly that of a sass master.

"They are such jerks." Clarisse said, shaking her head, and Mitchell smiled.

The entire camp would never admit it, but they were more than deserving of the immunity they had, and Taylor prayed to every god that she could be loved like Percy loved Annabeth.

**A/N: Here's a new chapter before a hellish week for me! Hope you all are doing well! Leave me a review please, or follow, or favorite. Especially if you like to eat burritos. you people have the best comments. Muchas Gracias my Lovelies~M**


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry for not posting in such a long time! Love you all! Enjoy!~M**

* * *

"But the story can't just end there, because they aren't sixteen, and I know something was up last summer. I may be new, but I'm not stupid," Taylor crossed her thin arms across her skinny chest, suddenly aware of all the eyes on her. She knew she was still young, but there was an aura around her that demanded to be recognized, almost as if she commanded power. Her dark hair contrasted with her pale skin sharply, giving her a look of sinister scheming, even when she was planning a princess party. Her skin was so different from everyone else here, with their deep tans and scars from years of living. Even people who were clearly not fighters had skin that seemed to glow; she assumed it was something in the water. She raised her larger than average eyes to meet those of Travis, never letting his brown eyes break contact with hers.

"It's time to take showers before dinner. We can tell the rest of the story at the campfire. Gosh, you are demanding for one so little." A mischievous smile came flashing onto his face and he picked up her almost 60-pounds-if-I-lie body and threw it over his shoulder, running to the cabin, hooting and hollering.

"Put me down!" Taylor yelled, shrieking with laughter as he poked her in the stomach as he ran.

"You sure about that, little one?" He asked, and while she couldn't see his eyes, she knew they had a devious fire in them. She giggled, feeling his boney shoulder pushing on her stomach. She'd never had an older brother or a cousin or really anyone who cared about her before, but she always imagined this was how brothers were supposed to be.

"Yes! Let me go!" She yelled back, seeing the smiles from other campers, like Travis acted this friendly with everyone, and she assumed this was the case. If you think about it, everyone at this camp is in the same boat, so they must be pretty close.

"Ok!" He yelled as he stopped suddenly and she was briefly in the air. In retrospect she realized he had let her continue forward off his shoulder for a moment before his brother grabbed her softly and set her back on the ground, casually brushing invisible dust off her shoulder nonchalantly. She laughed, a crystal clear sound that seemed to make the whole world sharpen in focus, sending rainbows shining off her teeth.

"So you never had family that was too cool before, eh?" Connor asked, keeping a protective hand on her shoulder as they walked the last 20 yards back to the cabin. He felt more like family than her own father did, but she had only known him for almost a day. There was something timeless about this place, like the trees that towered around them had been there for centuries and would remain there for even longer. It made her feel more solid, like she was no longer melting into a world she didn't understand. Now she knew people and history and she was one with the world.

"Nah, my dad never recognized that I was special until I accidentally blew up the locker room at school. They were mean." She defended herself after he raised his eyebrows in shock. He nodded understandingly, and she knew she would never be alone telling weird stories here. They all were a mixed bag of screwy family and circumstance. I guess when you think about it, we're all just responding to what's around us; take that away and who are we?

"My dad ignored me, threw himself into work, hired a sitter, or didn't. I was just some kid that he got stuck with, which I guess if you think about it, I kinda am." Her hair fell into her face, but Connor just pulled her shoulder against his side, like a half hug. She assumed he wasn't quite as huggy as his twin.

"You aren't stuck with anyone. You are where you choose to be." He smiled down at her, and her eyes lit up again, pulling her out of her small, sad past.

"Go take a shower, Taylor. I'll meet you back at the cabin after we're both clean and ready for dinner." He gave her a gentle shove in the general direction of the wash houses in the middle of the camp. She was jealous for an instant because he had his own shower, but took it right back. The counselors only got those privileges because they had sacrificed so much. She knew that the majority of them had fought in the Giant and Titan wars, but their smiled and actions never betrayed whatever darker events may taint them.

* * *

"So explain it again,"

"I really don't get why it's so hard to understand, and regardless, you're the smart one, figure it out," Percy shot back, his green eyes full of light. They were sitting in the middle of the woods, high up on the top of a boulder that they'd climbed. The position didn't look comfortable, but for a couple that had survived Tartarus, it must have not been too bad. Percy sat with his back leaning on a massive tree that grew up the side of the boulder with Annabeth facing him on his lap. Their faces were very close together, hands intertwined, smiles that could fix the world on display only for one another.

"I still don't get why anyone likes us, like worship likes. People like us because we're totally awesome, but why would anybody worship us. I mean, we've fought in two wars, but so have tons of people, and nobody watches them. Yesterday, this kid was watching me brush my teeth. BRUSH MY TEETH! Who does that?!" Her hands waved around her face, her eyes wide with disbelief. Percy smiled and ran an uncomfortable hand through his hair. He'd done the same thing to Luke once (only once) when he was a first year.

"Really, it's not all that bad Annabeth. Just pretend that you're Beyoncé. That's what I do." He made a duck face and winked at her.

Annabeth laughed, throwing her head back. Percy smiled like he couldn't actually stop.

"All the single ladies indeed," Annabeth commented, raising an eyebrow. Percy made a mock offended face and poked her in the ribs.

"That was a really long way to go for a break up joke," Annabeth smiled, glad he'd caught her drift.

"Thank goodness I can make break up jokes again, because I have a multitude. I also have blonde jokes for your pleasure," Percy gave her a suggestive smile, but then backtracked seeing her incredulous face.

"I also have numerous nice pickup lines and compliments for you, darling," He said in a nasally voice, barely keeping the shake out of the last few worlds.

Annabeth laughed. "Thank you, love" She replied in an equally nasally voice.

Percy reluctantly looked at his watch, like he wouldn't mind missing dinner if he got to sit alone in the woods with Annabeth and make her smile. To be honest, he would prefer it, but he knew that tomorrow was capture the flag, and that required diplomacy, and general playing nice with the others, something he didn't excel at.

"It's like 5:45. How much do you want to be on time to dinner?" He said, tilting his head to the side and moving closer to her lips, so when she answered their lips brushed.

"I kinda need to go, diplomacy among the campers and everything. And you know people will talk if we don't show." She pulled back a bit, but he followed, pulling her into him by her waist.

"Let them," he whispered, kissing her properly, for the last time before helping her up.

"Fine, I guess we should go," He smiled mischievously.

"Wha-"But Annabeth never got to finish that accusation because Percy acted quicker.

He picked her up under her knees and behind her back and threw them off the top of the 20 foot boulder, flipping head over heels, cackling.

His sneaker clad feet made indents in the ground when they hit, a full ten feet from the rock.

"Ta da," he said with a dramatic bow after he'd put her on the ground. He looked up dramatically, a hand to his forehead.

"Forsooth, doth the lady hath a fear of thine heights? I doth say that thine smile doth betray thou, my lady," He smiled. Annabeth just shook her head.

"That was terrible," but she still took his hand and pulled him out of the woods. By the time they'd arrived at the dining pavilion, Percy had received uncountable numbers of kisses for saying stupid things. And absolutely nothing was out of the ordinary about that. Thank the gods.

* * *

**A/N: This is becoming a regular thing, but Sorry for not posting for so long, I literally have no ideas, so you shall suffer through more fluff! Ha! I did actually laugh out loud, and now my lovely sister thinks I'm bonkers (as if she needed more proof) but anyway. Thank you all so much for reading! And don't forget to leave me a review! No te olvides! A bit of Spanish for you cool kids. But if you review I'll send you a nice PM with a thank you and a bit of random info about my life. Muchas Gracias my Lovelies!~M**


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